The present invention relates to managing files, and more specifically, to automatic deletion of a file or part of the file in response to the reading of the file or portion of the file.
There are many applications in which digital files are stored for subsequent reading and use. Files may be deleted when they are no longer needed or there is a reason to delete the files, such as for privacy or security concerns. When they are deleted there is more storage space available for other files.
There are a number of consumer electronic devices available today that store large data files for reading by the user. Examples of such devices include digital video recorders (DVR), such as the Tivo™ recorder, wireless reading devices such as the Kindle™ e-book reader, and Blu-ray digital recorders. The data on these devices is stored as read only and is not meant to be modified. The amount of files that these devices can store is necessarily limited to the size of the stores on the devices. For example, some storage devices, such as a flash memory card or a rewritable DVD, can only store a limited number of hours of video files or “shows.” Thus, the longer the shows, the fewer the number of shows a user can store. When storage devices are full, it is necessary to delete one or more stored files in order to make room for new files.